


She is Love

by ThatBohoFemme



Series: Ma Belle Evangeline [1]
Category: World Wrestling Entertainment
Genre: Best Friends, Childbirth, Gay Parents, M/M, Pregnancy, Slice of Life, Surrogacy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-10
Updated: 2017-11-09
Packaged: 2018-12-13 17:04:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,655
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11764443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatBohoFemme/pseuds/ThatBohoFemme
Summary: First comes love. Then comes marriage but not before beating up them up repeatedly in front of an international audience because that's just what you do when you're a wrestler. If you're lucky, you follow up with a baby carriage- courtesy of your best friend willingly giving up her body for nine months.





	1. Pre-Labor

**Author's Note:**

> This fic would not leave me alone until I wrote it. The first part jumps around a lot but gets more consistent in the following parts. Hope you enjoy it as much as I have writing it.

It started with a passing thought one snowy day. 

"We should have a baby." Dean, Seth's husband said. 

His words caught Seth completely off-guard. 

"Why?" Seth set aside the cup of green tea that he had been sipping. 

"I just think it's the next thing to do. We'd be good parents." Dean shrugged. "It's something to consider." He flopped down onto the old rattan sofa. "Think about it. We've been married for two years. I'm finally in a position where I don't have to go on the road so much. We have everything a baby could want."

"Do you know anything about babies?" 

"What's there to know?" 

Seth should have known that life as he knew it would never be the same.

The next few weeks after this conversation were spent arguing. Surrogacy or adoption. Which kind of adoption. Were they even good candidates for adoption considering they lived on the road? Surrogacy seemed like the best option. Was it better to find a surrogate at an agency or ask someone that they know. Who did they know that might even remotely consider this crazy request. Who would be the dad. 

Seth's head had never spun so much. He had always kind of wanted kids one day. He had anticipated doing it the normal way. Finding a nice girl, getting married and starting a traditional family. 

Then, a blue eyed man with a list of issues a mile long had come around and swept him off his feet. 

This was not the life that Seth had planned on having but it was uniquely his and he embraced that. 

"What about Bayley?" Seth asked. "She loves us. I trust her. She's already offered once." 

"She was drunk and it was our wedding." Dean lounged back onto the chaise lounger. "Does that even count?" He thoughtfully chewed the inside of his lip. 

"Drunk men tell no lies." Seth shrugged, leaning back onto a nest of pillows. "Best option that we have." He closed his eyes, rubbing his temples. "The worst she can say is no." 

Alas, Bayley was only too happy to say yes- she'd love to be a part of helping to start their family. 

The next seven months go way quicker than Seth would like to admit. One second, he's in bed- arguing with his husband over the minutiae of having a baby. Then, he blinks and not only do they have it all seemingly figured out, but their surrogate is halfway through her pregnancy and they're about to find out if it's a boy or girl. 

They met Bayley at a coffee shop down the street from the sonography lab. Seth doesn't want to admit it but it looked like Bayley had doubled in size over night. They had left her last night, and she'd been regular albeit a couple pounds heavier Bayley. By the early morning light, she was pregnant Bayley.

This was all so strange. 

"I know what you're thinking," she said, rising to meet them. "I noticed the same thing. So did Finn." She rubbed her belly, focusing on one spot in particular. "Give me your hand." She seized Seth by the hand and placed it on the side of her belly. She firmly pressed it in until he could feel something and then, it jumped at him.

"Was that...?" Seth's eyes grew large in bewilderment. He jumped as she pressed his hand into the spot again and he felt it again.

"Yep. Our girl doesn't like being poked." Bayley's eyes twinkled. "I'd been feeling it for a while but last night, I was in bed with Finn and for whatever reason, he poked me in the belly and she responded."

"What if it's a boy?" Dean stepped forward. "Can I?" He held out his hand. 

"I don't know- I'd be surprised if it was. I just keep getting girl vibes off this one." She pressed Dean's hand into her belly. "God, this is amazing." She wiped the tears forming in her eyes. "This is not how I imagined my first pregnancy to be but you know what? That's okay. I get to help someone I dearly love and it'll be my turn the next time. Finn and I are thinking about next spring for our own kid." 

Seth pulled her close in a tight hug. 

In that very moment, he had never been more grateful for his best friend. 

 

"Well, gentlemen and Mama, we are in a position to see exactly what you're having," a friendly sonographer said, staring at the monitor. "Do you want to know?"

"Yep," Dean Ambrose, Seth's husband responded casually. 

"Okay, well, we're going to look right here," the sonographer pressed his finger into the screen. "It's a girl." 

Bayley gave his hand a hard squeeze. Her grin said it all. 

_I told you so._

"Well, time to start buying a shotgun." Dean remarked. "I'm going to give the best cleaning my gun speech to her boyfriends." 

"She's not dating until she's 40." Seth glared at Dean. 

"Can we focus on getting her here before you argue on when she can date?" Tears glistened in Bayley's eyes. "Besides, I'm the Godmother and I say she dates when she's 45." She tilted her head back on the pillow, staring at the ceiling. "A girl. I knew it." 

"Now the fun really begins. Picking a name." Dean shook his head. "Getting a nursery together. So much to do in so little time." A thin sheet of sweat seemed to take over as his eyes took on a far away glassiness.

"Sit down before you faint." Seth released Bayley's hand and helped ease Dean into a chair. "We'll handle it. Haven't we always managed whatever life's thrown at us?" He pressed his lips to Dean's lips in a quick kiss. 

In that very moment, Seth tried to keep his cool. Dean did have a point in that there was a whole lot to get done in not a lot of time. They'd manage though.

They always did.


	2. Early Labor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Labor begins. Dean is a squirrel. Seth tries to hold everyone together.

She is Love.  
Stage One

The last thing Seth expected was to walk into his house and find his heavily pregnant best friend and surrogate mother patiently sitting on the couch while his husband slept, his head pressed to her belly. 

It was even stranger because he knew for a fact that Bayley hated that couch. Since getting further into her pregnancy and getting bigger, she couldn't sit there without getting stuck and requiring multiple people to hoist her up. 

"You look miserable," he commented, sitting on the arm of the couch. "How long has he been like that?" 

"Lower your voice," scolded Bayley, running her fingers through Dean's hair. "I don't think he's sleeping at night again." She winced, shifting around. 

"Can't tell if he's excited or worried," Seth admitted, moving to a more comfortable spot on the rattan sofa. 

"Think it's a bit of both." Bayley closed her eyes, pressed her palm into her basketball sized belly and inhaled several times. 

"You okay?" Seth didn't know a whole ton about pregnant women but he knew enough to know when something seemed off. 

"My butt is numb. I have to pee and I'm expecting someone." She pressed a button on her phone and jotted something in a tiny notebook. "Other than that, I'm fine. This is a part of the process." 

Seth's eyes widened as he realized just what she was saying.

"Are you contracting?" 

"Just a few. Not too serious and we don't even know if these are real yet." Bayley shifted again. "Midwife told me to call her back when the contractions are 45 to 60 seconds long and five to six minutes apart." 

Seth furiously blinked. How the hell could Bayley be so calm? She was having a baby- could very well be in labor right this very minute and you'd have thought she was talking about a delivery of vegetables. 

"They're only 20 seconds along and about nine to twelve minutes apart." Bayley shrugged.

"Did you let Finn know?" Seth clutched at his stomach, trying to control his sudden nausea. 

"First person I called. Told me to update him as needed and he'd be home as soon as he could. Probably in a few days." Bayley sighed, moving again. "Back hurts."

Seth leaned his head back, closing his eyes. He had known that this moment would come eventually but he hadn't prepared himself for just how anxious he would be. 

Bayley was calm. 

Why couldn't he be the same way? 

"I'm going to take a shower. Do you want me to get Dean to move?" Seth pushed himself off the sofa.

"He's harmless for now. Let him sleep. We all might not get the chance for a while." She settled back into the couch. 

As the hot water poured over him, Seth tried his best to keep his head clear. He had known that the baby would have to come eventually and that due to Finn's travel schedule and the fact that it was his baby, he'd be the primary birth support.

If he had known about all of this, why was Bayley's potential labor such a big deal?

"Having a baby is a big deal, regardless of how much time you have to get ready." Dean's soft voice pulled Seth out of his thoughts. Seth pulled the shower curtain back and glared.

"Really need you to get out of my head." Seth said, trying to keep the shampoo out of his eyes. 

"Well, you shouldn't think so loud." Dean pulled the curtain back even more, choosing to join Seth in the shower. 

They were definitely an odd couple- this was not a fact that Seth ever argued. Seth was logical and to the point. Dean was emotions driven and would beat around the bush until he had to be direct. 

For whatever reason, they worked and Seth was fine with that. 

"I can't find Bayley." Dean called after they had finished showering. "She's not in the living room." 

It would be a miracle if he survived Bayley's labor without killing Dean. 

"Did you check her room?" Seth wrapped the towel around his hair in a loose turban. Quickly, he dressed in a baggy t-shirt and black track pants. 

Bayley wasn't a fan of hospitals. Dean wanted a certain amount of freedom for him and Seth after the baby was born. Because of this, it had been mutually decided that a home birth was in the best interest of both Bayley and the baby. 

With this in mind, they had turned the guest suite into the Bayley Ward. The room was set up with everything that a heavily pregnant woman would need. It was also where the baby would be born. 

"Come on." Seth swept open their bedroom door and met Dean in the hallway.

They found Bayley in the guest suite bathtub, trying to enjoy the warm water and the jets. The fact she was dressed in her birth outfit (a black bandeau top and a loose black 'birth skirt') told Seth that her earlier contractions had been no false alarm. 

"My back was acting up. I couldn't get comfortable," she explained, wincing. "Thought this would help." 

"How did you manage to get in that?" Seth squatted beside the tub. "Is it?" 

"Very carefully and no, not particularly." She hissed, seemingly at the start of a contraction. 

"Back labor." Dean appeared next to Seth. 

Seth had to double-take. He could have sworn that his husband had been wearing a t-shirt and gym shorts. Where had the purple swim trunks come from?

"Just going to keep you company."Dean eased into the tub and managed to shift so Bayley rested between his legs and he was able to support her back. "Just like we practiced." 

There were times that Seth just didn't understand his husband. For as intelligent as Dean was, he was also eccentric. Eccentric didn't necessarily bother him but he also was the first person to admit it. 

This was one of those times. 

"Given any thought to names?" Bayley asked, leaning back into Dean's grasp.

"Not yet. Dean thinks we need to meet her first." With his hair no longer sopping wet, he removed the towel and tied his hair into a loose ponytail. He then reached into the tub and squeezed one of Bayley's free hands. "Ready to get out?" 

"The water went cold." 

Dean stood first, making as graceful an exit out of the tub as he could manage. He helped Seth hoist Bayley out of the tub. 

"Finn's been calling her E." She wrapped a pink fluffy towel around her shoulders and settled into a rocking chair. 

"E what?" Seth was intrigued.

"Just E. I think she likes it because she always kicks when he calls her that." Bayley shrugged. "It's your call."

"Well, we definitely wanted you to help us pick because you're half the reason she's even on her way," Seth explained, watching her rock. He turned back, expecting to find Dean standing there but he was gone again. "Where the fuck does he keep going?" 

"I don't think he likes seeing me in pain." Bayley paused, exhaling and inhaling. "She's kicking my bladder again. Can you help me up?" 

Seth stood outside the bathroom talking through the door.

"I understand that he's worried but I don't know how the hell he keeps disappearing without me noticing." 

The toilet flushed.

"He's quiet?" The bathroom door opened. "It's going to be a very long night." She stood in the doorway, looking down at her belly. She seized Seth by the hand and placed it on the top of her belly. "Feel that?" 

"Is that her?" Seth had been able to feel her kick for nearly six months but he never failed to be amazed by the miracle of those tiny kicks. 

"Yep. Don't think she likes being forced out of her squishy waterbed." Bayley giggled. 

"Back." Dean appeared once again. "Miso soup for the laboring lady that needs to keep her strength up and sushi for us." He held up a delivery bag. 

"When the fuck did you order sushi?" Seth knew Dean could be incredibly sneaky. That was one of the reasons that he had fallen for his husband but nothing made sense today. 

"Before I got in the shower." Dean shrugged. "Was hungry and figured we didn't want to cook and know Miso soup is light enough for Bayley." 

Seth sighed. He could be irritated and annoyed that Dean was basically being a squirrel or he could accept it for what it was.

"I love and appreciate you, Dean." Seth pecked his husband on the lips. "Set up the card table. Hope you got extra pickled ginger."


	3. Active Labor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Labor continues. Seth tries to hold it together for everyone.

"The stronger the pain, the better it's working," Seth whispered as he applied gentle pressure to Bayley's lower back. He wasn't entirely sure that he was saying the right things but he knew that he would have to keep her focused on the task at hand. 

"Why did I not realize this would be so painful?" Bayley howled, her contraction peaking. The grandfather clock began to toll for midnight, telling them both that she had been in labor just under eight hours. "Our girl is taking her time." She smiled weakly, relaxing her body. "At least we can call the midwife now." She stifled a yawn. 

She was exhausted. Seth was exhausted. Dean was exhausted. 

"Why don't you close your eyes for a few minutes?" Seth wrapped his arms around Bayley's prone body. "I"m not going anywhere." At some point in the night, they had moved to the bed so Bayley could lay on her side and try to work through the pain. "I don't know how much sleep you'd get but it might be enough to recharge." 

"Think we can fill the good tub?" She nodded in the direction of the inflatable birthing pool. "I might be able to rest easier with the water taking the pressure off my back." 

"I'll do it." Dean jumped up from the rocking chair. 

As he set about filling the tub, Seth and Bayley shuffled around the house, just walking mindlessly.

"Would you like to see the nursery?" Seth stopped in front of a gray-green door. 

"I would love to." 

With the palm of his hand, Seth pushed the door open. He stifled a laugh at Bayley's audible gasp. 

The walls were painted the same gray-green as the door. The white iron four poster crib, carefully made with gray-lavender linens was resting against the far left wall. A mint green suede rocker rested next to the white wood changing table. The only pop of pink (a stuffed ballerina bunny) sat in the chair, almost as if she were waiting for her charge to arrive.

"It took so much arguing and Pinterest to pick that quote." Seth pointed to the black vinyl quote that had been installed over the crib.

"That's so perfect." Bayley blinked back tears and read the quote out loud.

_This is my family. I found it all on my own.It's little and broken but still good. Yeah, still good."_

"I know Disney can be cliche but it seemed so fitting." Seth sighed again. 

"No, it's perfect." 

"You know we'll never be able to properly thank you for this gift." Seth wrapped his arms around Bayley and rested his chin on her shoulder. 

Bayley brought Seth's hand to the top of her belly and pressed it right where the baby was kicking. 

"Your happiness is enough of a thank you for me," Bayley said. "I can't deny that it'll be hard to say goodbye but she's really just going where she belongs. I love her but she's never been mine and I know that." 

"She'll always know the part you played to get her here." Dean spoke, entering the room. "If it hadn't been for you, we'd never be here right now." 

Bayley tensed again as a contraction started. 

"The midwife will be here before you know it. Finn will be back as quick as he can. Just breathe. We'll get through this." Seth tightened his grip, doing his best to get her through the worst of the pain. 

"In case I didn't mention it, the tub's ready. Also think Cheryl is here- someone just parked in our driveway." He stifled a yawn. "I'm going to go close my eyes for a bit. Wake me in an hour and we'll switch." 

"You two are such a strange couple," Bayley commented, leaning on Seth. They moved through the hall back to the guest room. 

"I don't get it all the time but it works." Seth shrugged. "Do you want me in the tub with you?" 

"You might want to change but I'm going to lean on the edge for a bit." She gripped Seth's shoulder as she eased into the pool. With his help, she got down to her knees. 

"So, I hear we're having a baby." Cheryl, Bayley's midwife chirped. She grinned, squatting next to the tub. 

"Bay, I'm going to change while Miss Cheryl does her thing." Seth wasn't exactly squeamish when it came to the female anatomy but he also didn't want to have to be present for this stuff either. 

Seth managed to splash cold water onto his face in a feeble effort to shake off his exhaustion. Changing into loose blue trunks, he tried to stay alert. This was the most _on_ that he had been in a while. 

Meanwhile, Dean snored peacefully. 

"Well, I'm halfway there," Bayley said, noticing him the second that he entered the room. "Making progress but like I thought, our girl is taking her sweet time." She sighed. 

"We're making tea and don't get discouraged, Sweetheart. You're progressing beautifully for your first baby." Cheryl sat in a rocking chair and pulled out a pair of knitting needles. "Heart is strong. Baby is in a good position. All we can do is wait." 

"Oh and Dean was right- it was back labor." 

Before too long, Seth ended up in the pool, supporting Bayley. Her contractions were picking up and getting increasingly longer. 

"Go dry off," Dean wandered in. "I'll take pool duty and you can sleep for a bit." 

"Are you okay with that?" Seth asked. Bayley nodded. 

"You're no good to me as a zombie," she murmured sleepily. "I'll make sure you're awake before baby is born." 

Seth reluctantly left. 

He tried to sleep but found that he was just too wired. He laid there for a good twenty minutes before finally succumbing to his exhaustion. 

He woke up sometime later to find Dean had crawled into bed, wrapped himself around Seth and fallen asleep. 

Seth untangled himself from Dean. Blearily rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he grabbed for his phone, trying to figure out the time. 

4:24 AM. 

He'd been asleep for a good three hours. 

"He was getting bad anxious," Bayley explained from the bed. She rested on her side, her arms wrapped around her belly. "Finn finally managed to get a flight- thinks it'll be either midnight tonight or early tomorrow." She smiled wearily. "I'm eight centimeters dilated." 

"You're a champ, Bay." Seth whispered, squatting next to the bed. "What can I do?" 

"Need to switch positions." Sweat matted her hair to her head. She began to scream, a contraction starting. "This is the most painful thing ever." She began to keen. 

"You're doing great," Cheryl said, shoving Seth out of the way. She grabbed Bayley's free hand and made low hissing noises deep in her throat. "Almost done. Just remember why we're here." 

Seth swallowed, an intense panic threatening to take over. He had known that labor wasn't going to be easy but he hadn't prepared for seeing his best friend in this much pain and so out of control with herself. 

"Okay, we're going to switch positions." Cheryl pointed to a spot at the foot of the bed. "Seth's going to sit right here and we're going to get you to lean against him." 

Seth positioned himself in a way that Cheryl promised would help ease some of Bayley's pain. As she came in contact with his back, he braced himself. 

"Big pain," she hissed, leaning harder on him. "Big pain." She began to gulp air in a panicky sort of way. 

Cheryl helped to position her back on her side. Then, she thrust a Styrofoam cup of ice chips in Seth's hand. 

"Feed her. Bayley, you're doing exactly what your body was made for. Just stay calm and focus on me." 

Seth got off the bed and resumed his squatted position next to the bed. He spooned ice chips into her mouth. He was silently thrilled when her breaths grew more even and less panicked. 

She closed her eyes. 

"I can't do this. I really don't think I can do this." Bayley whimpered. 

"Yes, you can." Seth brought his head to her and whispered, his lips just barely grazing her ear. "You'll bring our girl safely into the world and be the best Godmother ever." 

"No, I can't," she keened. "I really can't do this." Her eyes darted around the room. "Can I please go home?" 

"Not until the baby comes." Cheryl appeared, holding a small wad of cotton. "Remember- we said that if you panicked, we would use lavender to calm you." She held the cotton under Bayley's nose. "Talk to us." 

Seth was surprised to hear himself growl low in his throat. For some reason, Cheryl was driving him insane with her domineering personality. 

"So tired." Bayley relaxed as her contraction ended. "The pain won't end." 

"Why don't we get back in the pool? You were managing better in the water." 

Bayley could only nod. 


	4. Transition & The Birth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seth helps guide Bayley through the rest of her labor and the baby arrives.

She is Love

For the third time that night, Seth found himself in the pool, helping to support Bayley. He knew that this was the time for him to step up and help her get through the rest of her labor.

He really had no problem with Cheryl as a person. She had been perfectly lovely during their visits. Her take-charge attitude was not helping this difficult situation. 

"Scream if you need to." Seth tightened his grip, feeling the peak of her contraction. "You do what you need to do to get through this. We're in this together." 

Bayley shrieked, keening loudly during a particularly rough contraction. Falling back, she closed her eyes and panted. 

"Having a baby is hard work." She laughed weakly. "Closing my eyes before the next one." 

_Why did we think a home birth was a good idea?_ Seth pondered, leaning back in the tepid water. He just hated seeing Bayley in this much pain and not being able to really help made it all the worse.

"You're almost to 10. You're at 8.5." Cheryl gently squeezed Bayley's shoulder. "Just keep at it. We'll have a baby before too long." 

As the night gave way to day and the grandfather clock tolled the news that it was 6 AM, it became clear that it was time to help bring a new life earthside. 

"Bay, I know you're tired," Seth whispered, bracing her against him. "We are so close to having our girl here." He shifted slightly, trying to ignore the muscles screaming for him to move. "Just keep being strong." 

"Okay, my dear." Cheryl wandered back to the tub. "Think it's just about time for us to have a baby." 

"Just a little bit more," Seth whispered so softly that only Bayley could hear him. 

"Just push when you feel the urge." Cheryl said. 

With a loud screech, Bayley bore down. Seth tightened his arms around her, trying to provide counter pressure to help the pain. 

"Good." 

Seth's grip eased. He glanced around, hearing the door shut softly. He felt Dean squat behind him and rest his hands on Seth's shoulders.

"Do you think you can give us another push, Bayley?" Cheryl asks. "It's okay if you can't- we can let you rest for a contraction." 

"I think I can do it." 

"Love you, Bay. You're giving us the best gift ever. We can never repay you." Seth began to tighten his grip as he felt the contraction start. 

She pushed again. 

"Okay, this little girl is almost here. I can see her head." Cheryl grinned. "Bayley, you're doing this like a pro." 

"You're doing great, Bay." Seth relaxed, feeling Dean squeeze his shoulder, "We're almost there." 

With a deep guttural groan, Bayley pushed again. 

"Head is out. One little push should get here all the way here." Cheryl laughed. "Only four pushes- you're doing great." 

Bayley screamed and pushed with all of her remaining strength. 

"Look who's here." She gestured for Bayley to reach into the water. "She's here."

Seth rested his chin on Bayley's shoulder as the baby was brought to the surface. He choked back tears, Bayley settling their daughter on her chest. He couldn't help but cry tears of joy as the baby opened her eyes and gave him a look that said plain as day.

_Hey, I know you._


	5. Afterbirth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The naming of Babies.

She is Love  
 _Afterbirth_

Seth, Dean and Bayley had been through a long labor, a fast birth and though they had thought that was the worst of it, it turned that trying to find a name was the worst part of the entire experience. 

"What about Carys?" Dean asked, glanced through the book of baby names. "I mean- for a middle name. It means 'love' and that's all I'm feeling right now." 

"E. Carys Ambrose. I like it but we need to figure out what the E stands for." Seth peeked over Dean's shoulder as they scanned the E names in the book. 

"Eleanor?" Bayley threw out the first name that she could think of. 

"Maybe. Not a big fan of the end part." Seth stopped at a name. "Think she's the bearer of good news?" 

"Well, I'd like think so but I might be just a little biased." Bayley stared at the baby in her arms. Even in just an old towel and nineteen minutes old, she was still the prettiest baby anyone had ever seen. 

"Thinking what I'm thinking?" Dean asked, finding the same name that Seth had seen. 

"Evangeline?" Seth asked, facing Bayley. "We can call her Evie. It means Bearer of Good News and Evangeline Carys has a certain ring to it." 

"Hello, Evangeline Carys." Bayley cooed. "Evie, we're so happy that you're here and healthy." She blinked back tears. 

"Bayley, do you mind if we take the baby and get her cleaned up?" Cheryl asked, coming up to them. "Just get her measurements, weigh her and get her cleaned up." 

"That's fine." Bayley yawned. "I'm going to close my eyes. I'm so tired." 

Dean took the baby out of her arms. His eyes widened as if realizing for the first time that their daughter was actually here. 

"Holy fuck, we just had a baby!" he exclaimed, glancing down at the baby. "We literally just had a baby."

"Tell me about it," mumbled Bayley sleepily. 

Seth gripped Dean's hand as they watched Cheryl weigh and measure the baby.

"She's nine and a half pounds and nineteen inches long." Cheryl announced. Staring at the baby, she grinned. "Well, you're a big girl, Evangeline." 

"Evie." Seth corrected. "We call her Evie." 

"Evie. I like it. Joanna's going to help you bathe and dress her while I get Bayley settled." Cheryl nodded in the direction of her assistant, a quiet woman wearing jeans and a blue t-shirt. 

Seth chose to hang back as he watched Dean bathe and dress the baby. He didn't know how Dean could be that confident while he was mildly terrified at what could happen. 

"Okay, Evie. I'm your papa. I'm going to be the fun one who lets you get away with murder." Dean cooed, cradling the baby close to him. "And this is your daddy. He's going to be the strict one that makes you eat your vegetables." 

Seth sat in the rocking chair, still watching and not speaking. 

"Here you go." Dean settled Evie into the crook of Seth's arm. "Evangeline, we are so happy that you're here and healthy. We've wanted you for a very long time." 

Seth tightly cradled the baby to his chest. He wasn't entirely sure what he was doing. He had never really held babies before. As he relaxed, he noticed that she weighed roughly the same as a large sack of flour. He stared into her eyes, drinking in the look that clearly said _hey, I know you._. A tear sprang to his eye as he realized that she had his nose.

"Why don't we give her back to Bayley?" Dean quickly nodded in the direction of the bed. 

Seth turned to notice Bayley silently watching them, tears running down her face. 

"Evie, I'd like to introduce you to someone else." Seth stood, holding their child even closer to him. "This lovely woman is the reason that you're here. She's 50 percent of who you are and I hope to God that you'll be half the woman she is one day." He moved towards Bayley. "This is your Godmother, Bayley. You'll call her Gigi. I don't know where that came from but Gigi fits her personality." 

"Hi, Princess." Bayley took the baby from Seth. She placed Evie on her bare chest and covered her with a blanket. "You probably recognize that sound. It's pretty much all you heard for the last nine months. Well, that and Uncle Finn's entrance music." She rested her hand on Evie's back. 

Watching them, Seth reaffirmed what he already knew. It was going to be incredibly difficult for Bayley to leave Evie with them. After all, this was the tiny human who had shared her body for nine months.

_How do you thank someone for giving you such a gift?_

"You just let them enjoy their time together for however long as that might be." Dean whispered, just loud enough for Seth to hear him.

"I hate when you get in my head," Seth whispered, kissing his husband. "But yes, we let them have their moment." 

"How are you feeling?" Dean asked, squatting next to the bed. "I know you've got to be feeling it." 

"I feel like I just pushed a nine pound baby out of my whoha. I'm sore, tired and want a shower but she's here." Bayley laughed. "Can you believe we had a baby?" 

"I can't." Seth settled next to the bed, close to where Dean was. "She's beautiful. She's healthy and she's here." He wiped his eyes. "And we have you to thank for that."

"I'm in love." Bayley cooed. "She's nursing like a champ too." 

It had been decided early in Bayley's pregnancy that she would pump and provide breast milk for the first six months of the baby's life. Bayley saw it as giving her godchild the best possible start. 

"Is she actually getting anything?" Dean cocked his head, intrigued.

"Just colostrum- pre milk." Bayley shifted her hold on the baby. "It's full of good stuff that will help make her strong." 

Dean excused himself, saying that he needed to get coffee and find something resembling breakfast. 

"You can lay next to me if you'd like." Bayley patted the empty side of the bed. "We just had a baby together- nothing between us can be ever awkward- going forward." 

"How would you like to take a shower?" Cheryl asked. "We can leave Evie with Seth and get you cleaned up." 

Bayley shot Seth a pleading look. 

"Go shower." Seth paused, pulling his shirt off. "We can have some skin to skin time." 

"Think she'd like that." Bayley handed the baby to Seth. 

He settled into the rocking chair, Evie settled on top of his chest. She glanced around, looking very solemn and serious. He looked at her, absorbing everything she was and all the potential she had. 

Evangeline had her mother's eyes, her father's nose and lips that he thought might have come from his side of the family. She had a ton of unruly dark hair that went in every direction. 

She was beauty. 

"Evangeline Carys, welcome to the world. We worked very hard to bring you here happy and healthy. You have ten fingers, ten toes and own my heart already. I can't guarantee that we'll always get it right but we'll do our best." He rocked, the squeak of the runners adding noise to the quiet room. "Papa and I will do our best to give you the world." He laughed softly. "Gigi and Uncle Finn love you a whole ton too." 

_This is what life is really about._ Seth thought. _Just enjoying the quiet with your brand new baby._

"Bagels, coffee and one very jet-lagged Irish man," Dean announced. walking in. "It's been a crazy night for everyone here." 

"You think?" Seth asked. "We spent all night helping our best friend bring our daughter into the world and Miss E. took her time." 

"Well, she's beautiful," Finn said, walking in. "At least, I think so. Only saw one picture courtesy of Dean." 

"Your wife is cleaning up." Seth glanced up from Evie. "I'll let her introduce you to the baby that you helped name."

"Finn!" Bayley squealed, gingerly moving back towards the bed. "I didn't think I'd see you until tomorrow!" 

"Didn't want to get your hopes up until I knew the flight would work." 

"Did you hear? I had a baby." 

"So I heard." Finn sat next to her on the bed. "What is this name I helped with?" 

"Meet Evangeline Carys. We call her Evie and it's all because you called her E." Bayley was only too happy to take the baby back. "Evie, meet your Uncle Finn. He's your godfather." 

"Pleasure to meet you, Evie." Finn ran a finger across her hand. "Love the name." 

Seth nodded in agreement.


	6. Postpartum

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Evangeline is six days old.

**Postpartum**

"So, the CD helped?" Bayley's voice asked, coming over the car speakers. 

"More than you could possibly have imagined. Dean's not a big fan but yet, I caught him singing the Nick Lachey version of _Hush, Little Baby_."

"You married him. Oh and thank you for the charm bracelet- it's lovely." 

"It was the least we could do- you gave us an amazing gift and as we see it, you can add to it." 

Evangeline was six days old. It had been the roughest six days of Seth's life and yet, he coped. He was so used to taking care of Dean that it wasn't a difficult transition to taking care of the baby. It just took some time to adjust, especially considering that Dean was no longer his primary focus. 

"Alright, sitting up hurts. Going to lay down. I'll be by later with more milk for her." 

"Just let yourself in. We should be up and if that's the case, I'll make tea. If by some chance we're not, just leave it in the kitchen and we'll do tea next time." 

"Sounds good. Love you." 

"Ditto." 

Seth grabbed the bags of groceries and let himself into the house. He tried to be as quiet as he could manage, figuring that Dean and the baby were asleep. 

He hadn't necessarily wanted to go out but they had been running low on groceries. Dean was the more confident of them with the baby so he volunteered to go shopping. 

Since Dean hadn't called, Seth figured that everything was okay. 

As he set the bags in the kitchen, he could hear the faintest strains of the Nick Lachey album, coming from the living room. He wandered in the direction of the music, taking extra care to be quiet. 

When you have a newborn, even footsteps have the potential to wake them up. 

_If you can dream it  
You can do it_

He peeked around the doorway, making sure to stay out of sight and watched. 

Dean held Evangeline against his shoulder, making sure to support her head and spine. He then swayed to the music, holding her close to him. 

_I never thought I'd see the day my tough husband would dance with a baby._ Seth thought, his lips turning up into a smile usually reserved only for Dean.

"I see you, Seth." Dean called, still keeping rhythm. "Come here." 

Seth wandered into the living room, appraising the situation. The house was a mess- baby clothes and cloth diapers everywhere. Dean has had the same outfit on for three days- gray sweatpants and a black tank top. Yet, the baby was quiet and content- all that really mattered in the grand scheme of things. 

"Hey, if you want a break, I'll take her." Seth picked up one of the slings that Bayley had insisted they buy. "You can shower, take a break and I can wear her while I put away the groceries." He pressed a quick key to Dean's cheek. 

"Actually going to put her down- Little Lady is just about asleep. Just keep an ear out for her. Though if you wanted to, we can just take a nap and put away the groceries later." 

Seth sighed. A nap did sound _glorious_. 

"Let me go put the perishable shit away and then I'll meet you. I do suggest taking a shower while you can though." He kissed his husband- on the lips this time. "You smell like spit up." 

"Deal. Keep your ear out for her." Dean returned the kiss and wandered into the direction of their bedroom. 

Seth knew that it wasn't always going to be this easy. Babies added an extra level of stress to life. It wasn't an easy transition. Yet, he couldn't think of anything he wanted more. 

He was just going to make due. He and Dean were strong and capable. Evangeline was just a wanted addition to their family.

Besides, it wouldn't be like this for long. 

-Fin-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm still going to work on this series as ideas pop up and believe me, they _will_. When I get bored and can't write anything else, I love to visit this verse as the boys have way more adventures to get through as they navigate parenthood. 
> 
> Also, credit to the song 'Once Upon a Time' by Nick Lachey. It's such a pretty song!
> 
> Hope you liked this as much as I enjoyed writing it!


End file.
